In Memoriam: Sophie

Many of the patients who have come to see me have had the good fortune to be welcomed by my dog Sophie. She loved going out to the waiting area to greet anyone who came in and to then show them the way into the room. During a treatment she would often let out a deep sigh as if to remind all in the room to just take a breath and relax. Sophie also saw it as her job to show patients back out to the waiting room at the end of their treatment.

The only payment she requested, often with a gentle lean on your leg or by standing right in the middle of the waiting room so you had no choice but to pass by her, was scratches and pats. She helped to hold a calm, accepting and healing space with her quiet presence.

A few months ago, Sophie was diagnosed with lymphoma. After her treatment was started, a second cancer in her hind leg was discovered. Sadly, it recently became clear that the chemo wasn’t putting her lymphoma into remission and the pain from the tumor in her knee became unmanageable.

Thanks to the help of a wonderful vet, Sophie was able to be eased out of her pain at home, surrounded by love on a beautiful day with a gentle breeze and sun on her fur.

Her calming spirit can still be felt, but her physical presence will be sorely missed.

Sophie Revett September 5, 2008 - September 22, 2019

Sophie Revett September 5, 2008 - September 22, 2019

A lovely morning with Lucy's Love Bus and Accent Health

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Sometimes the most interesting things happen when you least expect them. I have been fortunate to have been working for the past several years with Lucy's Love Busan organization which provides funding for pediatric cancer patients to integrate therapies such as acupuncture, massage, therapeutic riding and art therapy into their treatment.  Through their program I was connected with a young girl named Camille and her mom Colleen.  In a flurry of  texts and emails on Monday, Beecher Grogan (Lucy's mom and founder of Lucy's Love Bus) managed to pull us all together to shoot a story for CNN's Accent Health featuring the therapeutic riding program at Friends for Tomorrow and acupuncture at Synergy Acupuncture & Wellness.  

Linda and Ed, the team who came to shoot the piece, were wonderful and managed to work really well with our small space, putting those of us who were a bit camera shy immediately at ease.  They also shot some of a treatment for Camille, but I'm afraid Ed was a bit disappointed at not having time to see some fire cupping.    All in all, it was a great time for a great cause.  To learn more about the many programs Lucy's Love bus has for cancer patients as well as a bunch of ways people of all ages can get involved check out their website Lucy's Love Bus.

We will be posting a link to the video when it goes up so stay tuned!